Following a split with Vermont last weekend in their return to the ice, the UConn women’s hockey team went into this weekend determined to take care of business against a Boston College team it had yet to face this season.
In the first matchup of the home-and-home, the Huskies welcomed BC to Freitas, where they had not played since December 3rd, looking to build on their strong home record of 8-3-2. UConn put pressure on Boston College goalkeeper Abigail Levy early and often, putting four shots on net within the opening minutes of the first period. The Huskies broke through on a Morgan Wabick first-period goal, finishing a feed from Natalie Snodgrass and her sister, Taylor Snodgrass, for her eighth goal of the season. UConn outshot BC 17-9 in the opening period, anchored by a strong performance from Samantha Carpentier-Yelle in net, which kept the Eagles off the scoreboard and propelled the Huskies to a 1-0 lead at the end of the first.
After successfully killing the BC powerplay, UConn added to their early advantage. Snodgrass found the back of the net for her seventh goal of the season and Wabick again set up the scoring opportunity for the Huskies with her second of the day. The contest was more competitive in the second period, as each squad notched eight shots, though Snodgrass was the only one able to convert.
The final frame was reminiscent of the game’s opening period, as the Huskies peppered Levy and the Eagles with 19 shots in a relentless attack that culminated in an insurance goal put through by Viki Harkness in the third period. This gave UConn a lead they would not relinquish, as Harkness scored her ninth goal off a feed from Danielle Fox and Chloe Gonsalves. Carpentier-Yelle notched her third clean sheet of the year, saving twenty shots to anchor the Huskies to a 3-0 victory.
The next night was significantly more contested, with UConn shipping up to Chestnut Hill to complete the second game of the home-and-home. Again, the Huskies came out firing in the opening period, putting eight shots on net, but ultimately failed to jump ahead as quickly as the previous night. However, it did not take long for UConn to break the scoreless tie, as Danika Pasqua and Coryn Tormala both scored in the early minutes of the second period, Tormala’s coming on a powerplay chance. Boston College had two power play opportunities of their own but failed to capitalize, as UConn took a 2-0 lead into the final frame.
Despite Carpentier-Yelle being locked down for the first five periods of this home-and-home, Boston College clawed their way back in the third, scoring three times in an eight minute span. This includes two scores in the dwindling minutes to move ahead of UConn 3-2, with Hannah Bilka driving home a goal to seemingly put this game out of reach for the Huskies.
Unfortunately for the Eagles, there was just enough time for UConn to tie the score in the final minutes of the third period. The Huskies did a good job of using an extra attacker to push this back-and-forth contest to overtime, where it was Natalie Snodgrass’ time to shine.
After Boston College had multiple chances to complete the comeback victory, it was Snodgrass who scored her second goal in as many nights to help the Huskies hang on and complete the sweep of the home-and-home. Her eighth goal of the season came off a feed from Alex-Anne Boyer, putting UConn on top 4-3.
Up next for the Huskies is a two-game series at home against the University of New Hampshire, as they look to build on their strong record of 17-5-2 in the first two of three meetings with the Wildcats of the season.
